Natalie Pollard’s attorney told a judge Monday that watching his client be sentenced for doing something he said “most people” would have done in her situation was a “bitter pill” to swallow.
Still, A.L. Brown told Ramsey County District Judge Nicole Starr that his client had decided it was also a “necessary pill” so that Pollard could finally put the case behind her.
“I think it’s just tragic that at some point Ms. Pollard is going to have to walk back into a jail in Shakopee for doing something that most people would have done to someone who came in through their window, drunk,” Brown said. “But this is Mrs. Pollard’s choice … I am just sad that she has to make it.”
Pollard pleaded guilty in October to one count of second-degree manslaughter in the 2015 death of her boyfriend, Obinna Nwankpa.
The manslaughter plea presented a mixed bag for the mother of six, who previously had been serving time in prison after a Ramsey County jury found her guilty of second-degree unintentional murder in Nwankpa’s death.
Her conviction was vacated this fall when the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled that the Ramsey County District Court erred in the instructions it gave jurors in her case.
The ruling made way for Pollard’s release from prison while the Ramsey County attorney’s office debated whether to retry her again for murder.
Instead, the prosecution ended up offering Pollard the chance to plead guilty to manslaughter.
While the latter count is significantly less serious than murder in the eyes of the law, taking the plea deal still meant Pollard had to admit that her actions were criminal.
Both she and her two attorneys maintain that Pollard was defending herself against an abusive boyfriend who had drunkenly broken into her family’s home when she pulled out a knife back in July 2, 2015.
Scared for both herself and her children, who were present but sleeping at the time, Pollard stabbed Nwankpa when he began fighting with her, according to her account.
Police found Nwankpa, 30, unconscious and bloody at the bottom of her basement stairs. He died a short time later.
Her case caught the attention of local activists, some of whom circulated her story on social media. They have called out the Ramsey County attorney’s office for criminalizing what they say were the innocent actions of a domestic abuse victim defending her family.
The group also staged a recent rally outside Ramsey County Attorney John Choi’s office demanding he drop the charges against her.
Staff with the county attorney’s office has maintained that the facts of the case supported the manslaughter charge and point out that a jury previously convicted Pollard of murder for her actions that night.
Pollard was sentenced on the manslaughter count Monday in accordance with the plea deal reached with the state. Judge Starr sentenced her to about three and a half years in prison, but also gave her credit for the time she served on her last conviction. The result means Pollard won’t serve any additional prison time.
She was taken back into custody Monday though so she can be process and booked once again at a state correctional facility in Shakopee.
Starr said she expects Pollard will be out no later than Wednesday.
“It’s most important for Ms. Pollard to get this behind her,” Brown said of Pollard’s motivation to plead guilty and accept another sentence.
Pollard was tearful when she addressed the court.
The 36-year-old said she’s sorry her actions took the life of the father of one of her six children. She sees Nwankpa in her toddler’s face and knows one day she’ll have to explain to him what happened, Pollard added.
“I know what happened to his father is traumatic … I wish I could apologize to (Nwankpa’s) father and his sister and let them know I am so sorry. … It was an accident,” Pollard said.
Nwankpa’s father did not support the plea deal reached between the parties as he believed Pollard was guilty of murder.
“We all agree that no woman should live in fear in her own home. … I assume we can all also agree that no parent should have to bury their own child … even a child that may have strayed from the path,” Starr said to Pollard before delivering her sentence.
Pollard was taken into custody following the hearing.
A spokesman for the Ramsey County attorney’s office issued the following statement about the sentence:
“Given the totality of circumstances in this case, we believe the judge’s sentencing decision is in the interest of justice,” the statement read.
